Leading in Church PlantingSample

The Beautiful Shepherd

Twice in this passage Jesus refers to himself as the good shepherd. His love and leadership are not what people have experienced from the Herodian dynasty or from their local religious leaders. As is often the case, what Jesus is saying goes a couple of layers deep. When we think of the goodness of the shepherd perhaps the first things that comes to mind is the moral quality of his leadership—he’s righteous. And that’s true, but the word Jesus uses for good (kalos, in Greek) can also mean beautiful, or even desirable.

One of the times the word kalosis used in a context where it clearly refers to the beauty of an object is in Matthew’s recording of Jesus parable about the pearl of great price. Its beauty is obvious to the merchant and worth more to him than all his other possessions combined. As we might remember, the pearl in that parable represents Jesus himself.

There is something beautiful about the leadership of Jesus. His welcome to outcasts, his spellbinding teaching, even his very presence all have a magnetic quality to them. People are attracted to Jesus; he draws them in. It’s possible people couldn’t quite put their finger on what it was about Jesus that made them want to be around him so much.

I would propose, it wasn’t just his goodness; it was his beauty. It has an effect on us. Like the merchant who found the pearl and had to have it. It’s an underappreciated, and therefore under imitated, hallmark of the life and leadership of Jesus.